


But It's Cold Outside

by leafchron



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Bartender drama, Christmas Fluff, M/M, Tokujo Kabachi!!, crossovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-24
Updated: 2015-12-24
Packaged: 2018-05-08 23:19:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5516900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leafchron/pseuds/leafchron
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I wish I knew how to break this spell"</p><p>Or</p><p>A lawyer walks into a bar.</p>
            </blockquote>





	But It's Cold Outside

**Author's Note:**

> Written in 2010 intended as an Aiba birthday fic, never posted till now. Inspired by Aiba playing a bartender in the Bartender drama, and Sho playing a lawyer in Tokujo Kabachi!! Back when those were actually, y'know, new dramas.

The bar’s door opened, letting in a smartly-suited gentlemen, smooth briefcase in tow, elegant but discreet cufflinks on understated, expensive suit, shoes and watch quietly whispering money on his wrist, making the hand-knitted red and green wool scarf wound tightly around his neck an especially stark contrast.

The bartender continued mixing his drink calmly, only raising his eyes to meet the customer’s eyes, acknowledging him with a warm “Welcome” and a mild though sincere smile. A discreet glance of the customer. Lawyer, he decided. Just off work on Christmas Eve, almost Christmas now.

The lawyer glanced around the bar hanging up his heavy coat on the coat stand, full of couples huddling into each other or small groups of friends commiserating over drinks. Soft amber lighting casting a warm glow on the walls, polished understated furniture, wooden shelves with rows of alcohol stacked neatly, not a bottle out of place. He smiled to himself and chose a seat at the bar near the end, all the better to observe and not be observed. He unwound his scarf. The bartender had strolled over to him after serving the drink he was mixing. “Good evening.” The bartender’s voice was warm and very mellow.

“Good evening,” the lawyer replied with a smile to match his. He was good-looking, the bartender thought, ready to charm and a steeliness and something strong and calm underneath it. “What would you like to start with, Sir? “

The lawyer smiled in a way more than necessarily, and murmured, “I’ll leave it to you, bartender. Make me something good, something that’ll make me forget today and keep me in the now.”

Demanding, the bartender thought. Charming and just a hint of trouble. He merely nodded and turned away, running through alcohols in his mind, practiced hands automatically moving with skill and familiarity, and just a touch more, discreet concern for every customer, to give every customer what he needed, even if the customer didn’t know what he needed.

When the bartender asked for his order the lawyer was tempted to tease, I’ll like to drink in your voice all night long, but it would be unbecoming. This was not one of those bars. Still, it would not be a lie. He was tempted to see how the bartender would react to it, and had a feeling the bartender would just give him one of his warm, mild smiles, unflappable. He knew his order was troublesome, nothing as troublesome as a demanding customer who didn’t know what he wanted and expected to have his mind read, but he’d heard of the bartender’s skill to read customers and deliver what the customer needed exactly, out of the customer’s realm of awareness. The desire to test him was irresistible; he wanted the bartender to read him. And to see what he was in the bartender’s eyes.

The bartender picked out a few things, aware the lawyer was watching him; he could feel the intensity of the gaze on his back. So, he mused, it’s a challenge. He picked up another bottle from the other end of the bar and felt the eyes following him. He kept the grin in his head and his expression focused, channelling even more grace and elegant in executing every move, every gesture exact, no more and no less. He was putting on a show for an attentive audience of one.

The bartender had lovely fingers, the lawyer thought. Beautiful and slender and the way he twirled the bar spoon between his fingers. He could get intoxicated watching his fingers, hands moving. It was exquisite art and craftsmanship, spinning beauty and elegance. A small lock of the bartender’s hair fell out of place, unnoticed, and the lawyer would’ve liked to brush it out of his face.

The bartender finished his performance with a neat flourish and slid the drink smoothly to the lawyer.

The lawyer smiled and picked up the drink, admiring it for a while before taking a sip.

“How is it,” the bartender murmured, fingertips resting lightly on the bartop.

“Strong, yet very soothing, If I could add another word. Warm.” The lawyer savoured another sip, and the bartender noted his piercing gaze had finally softened, drifted away.

He let the corners of his lips drift up a notch. “I hope it is to your pleasing, Sir.”

The lawyer focused his gaze back to him and let it settle. “Very much so, I must say.”

The lawyer’s smile, slowly losing its smirk and acquiring warmth, met his ghost of a smile. Then another customer called, and he bowed slightly in apology, and walked away.

The lawyer was sure that as the bartender walked away, his eyes had promised, later. He took another sip as he watched the bartender’s back, thoughtfully.

During a lull a while later, he called the bartender over. “You’re still working so hard on Christmas Eve.” The bartender smiled in a way that didn’t reach his eyes. “The same for you, Sir. It’s almost Christmas, and you’ve just gotten off work. Lawyers,” and here there was an almost imperceptible shake of his head, “are always so busy.”

A guilty look passed over the lawyer’s face and was gone in the next moment. “Yes, some clients insist on settling their affairs before the end of the year. Christmas isn’t a happy period for everyone.”

“Indeed, indeed,” the bartender acquiesced, eyes unreadable.

The lawyer sighed deeply and dramatically, fingering his incongruent scarf he had left on the whole night. “This scarf? My lover knitted it for me last Christmas. Workmanship’s not superb, but it brings a different sort of warmth, somehow. This Christmas, though he didn’t say anything, I’m well aware he’s mad at me. Because I had to work and couldn’t spend Christmas Eve with him.”

The bartender laughed lightly, not meeting his eye. “It’s just Christmas Eve, isn’t it? There’s still Christmas. Which is what’s important, the main event after all.”

The lawyer shook his head vigorously, with an air of finality that brook no argument. “No, it’s because his birthday is on Christmas Eve. It gets overshadowed every year by Christmas. It’s sad. But now, to me, the 24th of December is not just Christmas Eve. It’s his birthday. And that’s the most important thing.”

The lawyer leaned in closer, elbows on the bar top and fingers lightly intertwined, and beckoned the bartender closer. When the bartender complied, eyes questioning and twinkling, the lawyer smirked and murmured in a conspiratorial stage whisper, “Since my partner is ignoring me tonight, I’m going to be so lonely. Would you like to come home with me instead? I’ll wait for you to get off.”

The bartender looked like he would crack, barely holding it in, but managed to restrain it to a mere raised brow, corners of his lips amused. “Do you always pick up random strangers in bars?”

The lawyer shrugged. “No, only lonely bartenders working on Christmas Eve, and more importantly on their birthday. They should get off work early, enjoy the rest of their birthday, and let their workaholic partners make it up them and show them just exactly how sorry they are for missing their birthday.”

***

It was a cold wind, the kind of cold that went straight to his bones, almost a relief as he climbed into the lawyer’s car, even as it was still cold.

The lawyer turned on the heater, turned to him. “Okay?”

He nodded. He was okay now.

***

“Sho-chan,” Aiba sighed later, Sho doing his best to distract him, hands and mouth and the feel of skin. It was amusing how much Sho enjoyed role-playing the ‘two strangers meet at a bar’ scenario, but he supposed he did work in a bar, and voiced aloud as such.

Sho stopped what he was doing with his tongue, to his neck, and paused to chuckle beside his ear, deep and low, “It reminds me of falling for you for the first time.”

Sho always tried to sweet-talk his way out of situations, always, Aiba thought. Didn’t mean his anger had been fully appeased yet, though.

“Sorry, sorry,” Sho traced ghost fingers up his thighs, “Sorry for working late today, ah, yesterday. Look, it’s already Christmas. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

He made a disgruntled noise, but didn’t press further. Turned his head and just vaguely made out Sho’s green and red scarf, tossed carelessly over the back of a chair, the rest of his clothes a puddle on the chair. Sho found his hand and linked their fingers together, nudging his face back and pressing a kiss on his nose. “Guess what.”

“Hmm?”

“After putting in some overtime, I managed to clear one week of my schedule. During New Year’s Day. We can take a vacation. Go overseas wherever you want.”

He looked up. Fell silent. He wondered what kind of expression he was making. Sho searched his face for a few seconds, must’ve liked what he found, because a self-satisfied Sho-grin slowly made its way across Sho’s face.

Sho put both hands on his cheeks, squeezed him lightly, and held his face there so he could kiss him. When he finally pulled away, gasping just a little for breath, Sho murmured, draping his arm around his shoulder and playing with his hair, “Aiba, I didn’t forget about your birthday. I am really sorry I couldn’t spend it with you. But I have prepared your gift to make it up to you. It’s just a little delayed.”

He tried to hide the smile in Sho’s shoulder, but he imagined Sho felt it all the same, only stroking his hair with a satisfied hum from the base of his throat.

Finally, he deadpanned, “Alright, that’s that for birthdays. Now it’s time for my Christmas present.”

He felt rather than saw the laugh rapidly bubble and burst out of Sho uncontrollably, and was just a little smug he still had that effect on him.

Sho cocked an eyebrow at him, eyes amused. “Greedy, aren’t you. Well, you’ll find out in the morning. Christmas presents are only to be opened in the morning.”

Ignoring his protests of how it was technically morning already, anything past midnight was, Sho moved down his body, eyes still trained on his, merry and mischievous, and never broke contact as he licked his cock, and slowly took it into his mouth until his complaints turned into a long groan, fingers scrabbling for purchase on smooth sheets, clutching at Sho’s shoulder, shivering all the way down his spine, white blinding him and bursts of black and still Sho’s eyes smiled, smiled, smiled at him, trained on him.

Afterwards, he was boneless and jelly sprawled on messy bed sheets, and the calm darkness of sleep was wrapping gentle tendrils around his mind. He tried to fight them for a while and then deciding he shouldn’t. There were distant dream-like words whispered into his ear, lulling him, soothingly, “Happy Birthday, Aiba. And when you’ve had enough of it, Merry Christmas. And Happy New Year too, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves yet. But the new year will be happy and merry. I promise.”

**Author's Note:**

> Have a very Happy and Merry Christmas everyone! <3


End file.
